


leave a light on for me

by emmerrr



Series: my funny valentine [1]
Category: Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Valentine's Day, not compliant with cdth
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-22 14:26:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,525
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22717471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emmerrr/pseuds/emmerrr
Summary: They never make plans for Valentine's Day, but somehow they always end up together anyway.
Relationships: Ronan Lynch/Adam Parrish
Series: my funny valentine [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2162202
Comments: 25
Kudos: 316





	leave a light on for me

The first one is on a Thursday.

Thursday is a weekday, a school day, a boring day.

They don’t mention it. They don’t exchange presents or cards, there’s no whispered _Happy Valentine’s Day,_ there’s no dinner reservations, no chocolates or flowers.

But Ronan is there in the morning when Adam wakes up, the warmth of him pressed right up against Adam’s back as he gruffly murmurs, “You’re gonna be late, Parrish.” Later, he’s waiting on the steps outside the St Agnes apartment when Adam gets back from Boyd’s. Adam’s dead on his feet and has homework to do before he can sleep, but he still has a smile for Ronan, albeit a tired one.

“You lost, Lynch?” he drawls, and Ronan grins.

“I was in the neighbourhood. Didn’t wanna deprive you the pleasure of my company.” Adam rolls his eyes as he moves to unlock his door, and Ronan stands with a shrug. “But hey, if you’re busy, I can go.”

He’s not serious, Adam knows he’s not, but the “No, stay” still comes out embarrassingly quickly, and Ronan’s face is too smug to look at. Adam tempers it with, “It’s cold in my apartment and you’re warm.”

He shuts the door and switches the light on; Ronan’s already kicking his boots off, and the haphazard way in which they land makes Adam think: _home_.

“Just using me for my warmth, huh? What do I get out of this arrangement, then?”

Adam thought about it. “I think I have some Rice Krispies?”

“So you get a free heat source all night, and I get...dry cereal.”

“Exactly,” Adam says with a nod. “Equivalent exchange. This is strictly business.”

He’s smiling by now and Ronan steps closer, crowding Adam against the wall in a way that would feel claustrophobic if it was literally anyone else. Now, all Adam wants is for him to come closer _._

“Strictly business my _ass,_ Parrish,” Ronan says, and kisses Adam, finally.

And then there’s a shower, and there’s homework, and there’s sleep.

The V-word is not spoken, but they both know what day it is, and they chose to spend as much of it as possible together. If that’s not the whole damn point, then Adam’s not sure what is.

* * *

By the time the next February 14th rolls around, they’re living in separate states.

Harvard is kicking Adam’s ass, which for the most part is fine. It takes work, and he’s always been good at doing the work. It’s just...it’s a lot, is all, and he’s reaching that part of the semester where it feels like he’s repeatedly banging his head against a brick wall.

And there are Valentine’s decorations _everywhere._ He can’t escape them; it’s like Cupid threw up all over campus. This is supposed to be an Ivy League school for crying out loud.

His morning seminar is interrupted by a flower delivery for a classmate, who goes bright red and giggly and it manages to derail their remaining time making him wonder why he bothered showing up at all. Following that, Adam spends the rest of the morning in the library studying before running to grab lunch with his roommate before back-to-back afternoon classes.

There’s a special Valentine’s menu on at the cafe they go to, and the music playing overhead is exclusively sappy love songs. Adam scowls at the heart-shaped napkins on the table.

“I know why _I’m_ grumpy today, but I don’t get why you are,” his roommate says. “It’s not Single’s Awareness Day for you. You actually _have_ a boyfriend.”

Adam looks from side to side with great exaggeration and then shrugs. “Do you _see_ him?”

“I figured he’d be coming up to visit.”

“There wasn’t any point,” Adam says with a sigh. “I have no free time today. And I have a paper due on Monday.”

“Which you’ve practically already finished.”

“...I also have a quiz I need to study for.”

“I’m sure you can find a spare hour or two.”

It sounds so straightforward coming from someone else, but Adam can’t suddenly ask Ronan to come _now._ It’s too short notice to come such a long way. And besides, it’s not like they’d arranged to have Valentine’s Day plans. Neither of them had even mentioned it. It’s not the kind of thing that really gets on either of their radars.

But Adam’s been bombarded with lovey-dovey propaganda all week, he hasn’t seen Ronan in the flesh since early January, and he has a _mighty_ need.

He drags a hand down his face. “It’s a bit late now.”

His roommate shrugs. “So go home for the weekend. Leave after your last class and you’ll still get most of the weekend in.”

Just going home for the weekend isn’t something Adam can usually just _do_ on a whim, though. It has to be _planned._ He has the shitbox, yes, but he still needs gas for a roundtrip to Singer’s Falls. Gas costs money.

To be fair, Adam does have a little bit of money set aside for emergencies. He just has to decide whether or not going home for the weekend because he misses Ronan _really_ counts as an emergency.

...Yes, actually. Yes it does.

After finishing lunch, he calls Ronan as he makes his way across campus for his next class.

He’s not expecting Ronan to answer, because it’s the middle of the day and they don’t usually call each other until late, so he’s a little surprised when Ronan picks up after just a couple of rings.

“Shouldn’t you be in class,” is the gruff greeting.

“I’m on my way right now, and hello to you too, by the way.”

“Good afternoon, Adam, how are you today?” Ronan says sarcastically, and Adam bites back a laugh. Fuck he misses his boyfriend.

“Was that so hard? You know what, don’t answer that. Are you busy this weekend?”

“No busier than usual, why?”

“Got room for me?”

There’s a pause. “There’s always room for you, dickhead. Are you coming home?”

There’s hope in his voice and it makes Adam’s heart swell. “Yeah. Yeah I am. I have classes until five so I can’t leave until then, so don’t wait up. I’ll just crawl into bed with you when I get there.”

“That sounds fucking amazing. You’re not shitting me are you?”

“Course not. I’ll see you at like two in the morning or something horrendous.”

“See you then,” Ronan says. “What’s the occasion, anyway?”

Adam grins. “Don’t you know? It’s Valentine’s Day, Lynch.”

(When Adam finally arrives, he barely makes it out of the car before Ronan hurries out of the house and sweeps him up in a hug, his face pressed into the crook of Adam’s neck.

“I thought I said not to wait up?” Adam says through a delighted laugh.

“Couldn’t sleep. But I bet I can now.”)

* * *

Valentine’s Day number three has them, again, in separate states. Ronan’s in DC with his brothers this time, and it’s not like Adam’s free either. He’s picked up a part time job in the library on weekends, and as Valentine’s Day falls on a Saturday, he has to work it.

Ronan calls late on Friday. Adam’s been working on an essay and whilst he’s not _quite_ fallen asleep at his desk yet, it’s a near thing.

“Hello?” he answers groggily.

“You sound like shit, Parrish.”

“Love you too,” Adam says, then yawns. “How’s DC?”

“Boring as shit. Declan dragged us to an art show and we’ve only just got back.”

“What’s wrong with art shows?”

“Nothing when they actually show art.”

“Never took you for a snob, Ronan.”

“Look, you weren’t there, trust me, this _wasn’t_ art, it was all...fuck, I can’t even explain, it’ll make me mad.”

“Everyone’s a critic,” Adam says, then yawns again. “What time are you heading home tomorrow?”

“After lunch probably, so I should get back mid to late afternoon, depending on traffic. You got work tomorrow?”

“Yeah, gonna try and finish my essay while I’m there. Hoping for a quiet one with it being Valentine’s Day and all. Maybe everyone will have big romantic plans.”

Ronan lets out a long breath. “Valentine’s Day, huh? I remember last year when you drove down just because you missed me so much.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Adam smiles. “Hey, it’s your turn. I expect you outside my dorm tomorrow with a comically large teddy bear, heart shaped balloon, and a boombox over your head blasting some gross sappy love song.”

“In your dreams, Parrish,” Ronan says, and Adam can hear the grin. “Speaking of, you sound shattered. Go to bed.”

Adam wants to keep him on the phone, but Ronan’s right. He can already feel his eyelids drooping. “Alright. I love you.”

“I love you too.”

They hang up. Adam saves his essay and closes down his laptop, then brushes his teeth and goes to bed. He’s asleep almost immediately.

Work the next day is blissfully quiet. He has a few returns to sort out when he first gets there but other than that, he sits at the front desk and works on his essay, relatively interrupted for his entire shift.

He finishes at six, and when he gets back to his room he’s a little concerned that he hasn’t heard from Ronan. Surely he should be back at the Barns by now. Then again, he could’ve been held up in traffic, or he’s just planning on calling later like he usually does.

He sends a brief text — **♥♥♥ happy valentine’s day!!♥♥♥** — just because he knows it’ll make Ronan laugh when he sees it, then heads out to grab something to eat. His roommate is out for the night with his own Valentine’s plans, and all of Adam’s other friends have either gone home for the weekend or are otherwise engaged, so he figures it’s a good night to get some studying done.

Back in his room and two hours into studying, he frowns down at his phone. It’s a little after nine, and Ronan has still not checked in, and Adam’s silly Valentine’s text remains unread. He could call, but he doesn’t want to if Ronan’s still driving, even though he _definitely_ shouldn’t still be driving.

He thinks about calling Declan to check that Ronan left on time, but just when he starts scrolling through his contacts, the murder squash song assaults his senses.

Adam had been slouched in his chair, but he jolts up now. It’s been a _while_ since he’s heard this goddamn song, but it feels wrong to hear it in this context; it’s irrevocably tied to Ronan, and Ronan isn’t here.

He can’t quite figure out where it’s coming from, and figures it must be from someone else’s room and they’ve just left their window open (which seems unwise; it’s February). Adam gets up and goes to his own window to see if he can figure out the source.

And he finds it immediately.

Standing on the pathway outside Adam’s building is Ronan Lynch. There’s a giant teddy bear on the ground beside him, a heart-shaped balloon with Adam’s face on it tied around the bear’s wrist, and Ronan is holding a boombox over his head, speakers pointing up at Adam’s second-floor window.

Adam throws the window open. “This isn’t a sappy love song, Lynch!” he yells down.

Ronan grins. “I was just trying to get your attention.” He presses a button on the boombox and the song changes to I Swear by All-4-One.

Adam laughs, a little dazed. Then the reality of the situation catches up with him. Ronan is not at the Barns. He’s not even in DC. He’s _here,_ almost close enough to touch.

Adam says all he _can_ say. “Ronan, what the _fuck?”_

“I thought I’d stop by and see you on my way home,” Ronan replies with a one-shouldered shrug. He turns the volume down and puts the boombox down, then stuffs his hands in his pockets. He looks nonchalant, even though his actions are anything but.

Adam loves him so, so much. But he is so, so exasperating.

“This is not on your way home! This is like a seven hour detour for a two hour journey!”

“You asked me to come!”

“I was _joking._ ”

“I missed you.”

Adam exhales and shakes his head. “Fuck you. I missed you too. Come up.”

Ronan grins, triumphant (like there was ever _any_ doubt that Adam wouldn’t be happy to see him), and quickly gathers up his offerings as he heads towards the entrance.

Adam’s heart starts to race, suddenly excited. He casts a look at his desk with a textbook and notepad open, and knows he’s done studying for the night.

There’s a knock at the door.

“Hi,” Adam says when he opens it.

Ronan presses the teddy bear into Adam’s arms and steps past him, putting the boombox on the floor against the wall. He looks entirely too pleased with himself. “Hi.”

Adam puts the bear down on his desk chair, finally getting a closer look at the balloon, his own face staring back at him. Clearly a dreamt thing; they’re probably all dream things. “You are unbelievable, by the way. What made you choose that song?”

“I googled ‘sappy love songs’ and of the list that showed up, I thought this one would be funniest.” He turns off the music. “Also I don’t know why you’re so surprised to see me. I just did the same thing you did last year.”

“Except I told you I was coming. Always have to one-up me, don’t you?”

Ronan grins. “I try. Anyway, are you gonna fucking kiss me or what, I’ve just driven _seven hours,_ Parrish—”

Adam swallows the rest of that sentence with a kiss, and then there’s no more talking for a while.

Later, they curl up in Adam’s single bed. It’s a squeeze, but they make it work.

Ronan doesn’t take long to fall asleep, the drive catching up with him, although no doubt he’ll be awake horrifically early and bothering Adam into going to find breakfast. There’s something warming about knowing with complete certainty that this is what’s going to happen, because it has happened before. The intimacy of knowing someone else so well will never get old.

Currently, Adam’s the big spoon, his arm loosely thrown over Ronan. He can feel it rising and falling rhythmically with each breath Ronan takes, and he can’t believe that he woke up this morning alone. Ronan _belongs_ in his bed, with him, night after night. They belong together.

Adam thinks about Valentine’s Day in the years to come, where there won’t need to be impromptu drives to see each other, because they’ll be in the same state, the same city, the same house on February 14th.

(And all the other days.)

Smiling at the thought, Adam shifts closer, tightening his grip. Ronan makes a cute little noise in his sleep that Adam is _absolutely_ going to mock him for in the morning, but for now, he presses a kiss to the back of Ronan’s neck and closes his eyes.

Valentine’s Day is of little consequence. Ronan, on the other hand, means everything.

**Author's Note:**

> look i know that ronan wouldn't do this but i thought it was funny and i can do what i want.
> 
> title is from leave a light on by belinda carlisle which is an absolute banger you should listen to it. also hope you're all having nice days, whatever you're doing. <3


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